Pitchfork review of VLVODAAHF

[Stefan8]

A miracle has happened:

 

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

[Capitol; 2008]

Rating: 6.5

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Earlier this year, Britons voted Coldplay as The Band Most Likely to Put You to Sleep. The poll, conducted by hotel chain Travelodge, had Chris Martin & Co. beating out aural Ambien including James Blunt and Norah Jones. Even for a band known to take solace in their overarching pleasantness, the drowsy coronation doubled as a harsh insult. After all, Coldplay is a rock band. A grandma-friendly, Radiohead-normalizing, disarmingly polite rock band led by a man who sounds like he's still yearning for puberty perhaps...but a rock band nonetheless. After proving their stadium bona fides with 2002's bristling A Rush of Blood to the Head, these wuss messiahs fattened up with X&Y, a startlingly bland affair that even forced eternally level-headed New York Times critic Jon Pareles to dub them "the most insufferable band of the decade." The Travelodge survey indicated this considerate foursome wasn't even keeping people awake long enough to piss them off anymore. So Coldplay did what any U2 acolytes worth a chiming guitar chord would do-- they went off to "rip it up and start again." But Viva isn't a complete overhaul á la Achtung Baby or Kid A; just as they dull the sharp corners of their legendary influences musically, Coldplay offer a diluted version of the "experimental" mid-career maneuver with their fourth LP. It's a case of well-honed troubleshooting that should keep the faithful conscious enough to appreciate its subtle improvements.

Ever self-deprecating, Martin offered his band's thesis to MTV a couple weeks ago: "We look at what other people are doing and try and steal all the good bits," he said. "We steal from so many different places that hopefully it becomes untraceable." That last bit is probably wishful thinking. For their "new direction" album, Coldplay hired the egghead responsible for more new direction albums than any other producer over the past 35 years, Brian Eno. The move isn't original, but it's smart. A self-described "sculptor" with a tendency to chip away rather than augment, Eno helps Coldplay reverse their bloat in favor of a slimmer sound; the anthems remain but they're no longer bogged down by incessant refrains and overdubs.

 

Thanks to a bubbling bit of exotic percussion that wouldn't sound out of place on Peter Gabriel's latter-day LPs, "Lost!" is transformed from Just Another Coldplay Song into a uniquely alluring smash and live staple for years to come. The Gabriel connection is also apparent on the spectacular, wide-eyed "Strawberry Swing", which floats light tribal drums above circular guitars and Martin's idyllic musings. Think "In Your Eyes": The Next Generation. More welcomed semi-surprises: Ballsy first single "Violet Hill" pulls off some honest-to-God Scary Monsters mutant funk while "Chinese Sleep Chant" is a shoegaze excursion as traceable as it is passable. Arcade Fire producer Markus Dravs' touch can be heard on the strung-out anthem "Viva la Vida", its "woah oh oh!" refrain already responsible for untold iPod sales. Apart from a few brief lulls into somnolent twinkle-pop, the music is purposeful, svelte, and modern. If only Martin could inject some pathos into his often-embarrassing universal scripture.

 

There's a thin line between lyrics that speak to everyone and lyrics that suck-up to everyone (see: Bono's steady devolution over the last couple decades). Even on Coldplay's best songs, Martin sometimes has trouble reconciling his inner hack with his better judgment. On Viva, he backs away from the wallowing self-pity that tanked X&Y, instead going for black-and-white extremes-- life and death, love and lust, dreams and reality-- with little regard for any shades of gray. His supposedly ominous headstone obsession on "Cemeteries of London" is about as creepy as a midday graveyard stroll. And "Lost!" is nearly done in by a cringeworthy verse featuring big fish and a small pond. But there are moments when Martin's band mates push his wide-open words toward more specific meaning. Blissful nostalgia permeates "Strawberry Swing" so thoroughly it's impossible to deny its "perfect day," and the hook to Viva's closer relishes its immortal rush: "I don’t want to follow death and all of his friends!" He may be a pointed critic of his own broadness-- as seen in his guest appearance on "Extras" and in countless humble interviews-- but Martin is still a hopeless sap. He's clearly aware of Thom Yorke's apocalyptic verve and Bono's most cunning reflexive confessionals, but thus far he's incapable of matching either one.

 

"Lights will guide you home/ And ignite your bones/ And I will try to fix you," sang Martin on X&Y's "Fix You", a gag-inducing bit of motivational flotsam that came off like self-parody. Viva offers a more believable fix to the current Coldplay dilemma, i.e., how does a pop band with artful aspirations please everyone while satisfying themselves at the same time? Because while they ape their forebears without mercy, there's no mistaking a Coldplay song from a U2 or Radiohead song. The new album expands their individuality in tiny, effective ways while maintaining their world-beating gifts. The record's violent, revolution-themed artwork is misleading. Viva is more like a bloodless coup-- shrewd and inconspicuous in its progressive impulses.

 

-Ryan Dombal, June 16, 2008

 

Official Site: http://www.coldplay.com/

 

A 6.5! They've never given Coldplay such a high score!

[The Mad Hatter]

What the hell, I can't even understand what he's trying to say. His writing makes no sense. This is why I hate reviews. I never know what they're talking about, but I'm always sure I don't agree.

 

I think they gave the guy from Blue's Clues a higher rating on his first album.

[sebrat]

hey, from Pitchfork this is a good review :rolleyes:

[Mimixxx]

6.5 from Pitchfork? That's pretty good.

[winigwl]

wow!

[Space Cadet]

Wow 6.5... their highest mark in the past was a 5.3 for Parachutes.

 

AND they actually liked the music somewhat (for Pitchfork) - it was the lyrics that brought it down that low.

 

For those unfamiliar with Pitchfork, they review everything but their focus is on obscure avant-guard indie music. It's sort of their mission statement to promote things no sensible person could listen to for very long at a time. If an obscure band's music is mind-blowing by their criteria (or it's Radiohead, who they love) it will get a high mark. If a band is mainstream, it will automatically be marked down.

 

A good rule of thumb is that if a mark is below 7, add two points (so VLV would be 8.5), below 9 add one, and above 9 subtract one. That should give you a better picture of how much you might like the album.

[CRYSTAL]

anyway Pitchfork gave something!:rolleyes:

[Stefan8]

Wow 6.5... their highest mark in the past was a 5.3 for Parachutes.

The Live2003 DVD received a 6.0. I think :thinking:

[Starlight]

:stunned: Wow, Pitchfork, always seem to surprise me... :rolleyes:

[Collee]

Wow 6.5... their highest mark in the past was a 5.3 for Parachutes.

A good rule of thumb is that if a mark is below 7, add two points (so VLV would be 8.5), below 9 add one, and above 9 subtract one. That should give you a better picture of how much you might like the album.

 

Makes perfect sense to me now, thanks, lol!

[polkahard]

I've been waiting for this review. Can't believe they actually cracked a 6! I was thinking a 5 at best. Oddly enough, it seems that review is pretty positive. Minus faulting Chris (as they've always done) and calling him a "hopeless sap," they actually seem to somewhat like the record. They even call Strawberry Swing "spectacular!"

 

Let's be honest, Pitchfork has never labeled anything by Coldplay "spectacular" before. So that has to be something of a start!

[EnglishSilk]

Yayy! All the world is waking up to Coldplay!

[Sienna]

If only Martin could inject some pathos into his often-embarrassing universal scripture.There's a thin line between lyrics that speak to everyone and lyrics that suck-up to everyone

 

 

I agree with this completely....I just wish that Chris would stop trying to write lyrics a certain way, it seems forced.... which by far my only criticism of the album. :(

[Tnspieler1012]

A miracle has happened:

 

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

[Capitol; 2008]

Rating: 6.5

 

Earlier this year, Britons voted Coldplay as The Band Most Likely to Put You to Sleep. The poll, conducted by hotel chain Travelodge, had Chris Martin & Co. beating out aural Ambien including James Blunt and Norah Jones. Even for a band known to take solace in their overarching pleasantness, grandma-friendly, Radiohead-normalizing, disarmingly polite rock

 

Lol if I didn't know who the review was about, upon reading these parts of the first paragraph I would've been like..."Wow, I've gotta hear this band! Pleasant night music? norah jones? radiohead? disarmingly polite rock? Pick me up an album!"

 

Pitchfork is run by a bunch of idiots who try to drill their snobby, close-minded conceptions of rock and roll into the general public, I don't care if they give coldplay a 1 or a 9.9 out of 10.

[StephenG]

Yeah NME is snobby, but this is something else.

[lostsides]

They've obviously changed their minds about VlV because they've moved the score up to 6.9 now.